Nimble Quest iOS review

Being quite familiar with NimbleBit’s other big iOS titles, namely Tiny Tower and Pocket Planes, I was prepared to set aside several weeks before reviewing Nimble Quest.

Turns out that that wasn’t necessary at all. While the former games take some time to get into, Nimble Quest is easily accessible, and entirely enjoyable in bite-sized chunks. But that’s not to say it’s not up to NimbleBit’s usual standards.

Perhaps it was the ‘Quest’ in Nimble Quest that threw me; I’d been expecting a dungeon crawling RPG epic in the style of Final Fantasy et al.

Instead, what Nimble Quest delivers is good old-fashioned Snake in 21st century smartphone clothing.

Essentially, Nimble Quest tasks you with controlling an unstoppable (literally unstoppable) party as they run around various levels, preferably avoiding monsters, guards, walls and other pitfalls as they go.

In terms of controls, you simply swipe up, down, left or right as necessary, and, er, that’s it.

There are various characters to unlock in Nimble Quest, and assigning them as party leader allows them to gain experience and ultimately level up. Perks include boosts for Armor, Attack Damage and Attack Rate.

In the obligatory shop, Nimble Quest invites you to – among other things – increase the number of gems found in chests, enhance the magnet, and boost the radius of the bomb blast. There are seven thingies to upgrade in all.

Also, before you set off, there are one-off 'Buffs' available in exchange for gold coins, such as the option to skip levels you’ve already played (handy), and a shield for your party leader (handier still).

Finally, there’s an Arena mode, wherein you can hook up with friends and attack global leaderboards.

And that’s pretty much everything there is to say about Nimble Quest’s gameplay. Is it worth checking out?

Well, I definitely enjoyed Nimble Quest for the few hours that I played it, but it’s nowhere near as moreish or deep as Tiny Tower or Pocket Planes, so NimbleBit fans might feel a tad unfulfilled.

The flip side of the coin is that it’s enjoyable in tiny chunks without having to think too much.

It’s also worth mentioning that Nimble Quest can be played in portrait or landscape. Too many games force one or t’other. A simple but neat touch.

Pros

Good old Snake

Lots of characters

Portrait or landscape

Cons

Not a great deal of depth

Saving up, predictably, takes ages

Real samey after a while

Summary: Nimble Quest is Snake for 2013’s smartphone gamer, with minor RPG elements, and it’s every bit as good/bad as that sounds.